We are about to embark on a crash course in American politics... Let's start with the basics...
The American political landscape consists of two political parties -- the Democratic Party and the Republican Party.
The Democratic party is the party of President Obama and also controls the House of Representatives and the Senate.
The Republican party is in the minority in both the House and the Senate, but is poised to make significant gains in the November elections. President Bush was the last Republican president.
Here is a short article on the symbols of the two parties...
The American political landscape consists of two political parties -- the Democratic Party and the Republican Party.
The Democratic party is the party of President Obama and also controls the House of Representatives and the Senate.
The Republican party is in the minority in both the House and the Senate, but is poised to make significant gains in the November elections. President Bush was the last Republican president.
Here is a short article on the symbols of the two parties...
Democrats see the government as a force for good and look suspiciously towards entrepreneurs and business in general. They see government as a redistributer of wealth that from time to time makes thing fairer and helps out the less fortunate members of society. Democrats favor higher taxes on those who earn higher incomes as part of their "social responsibility" to help society because they can. The term "liberal" or "left wing" is sometimes used. Many Democrats are pro-choice and oppose what they consider the government legislating on "morality" issues. In the Iraq War, most Democrats wanted American troops to leave as soon as possible and thought it was a mistake to go to Iraq in the first place, although the majority did actually vote to go to war.
Republicans in general see government as a necessary evil and believe that the less government, the better. They favor entrepreneurs and business as the real creators of wealth and seek to have government stay out of the way. Republicans favor lower taxes, as they believe that taxation (especially raising rates on higher incomes) punishes achievement and discourages people from looking after themselves and being productive, responsible individuals. The term "conservative" or "right wing" is sometimes used. Many Republicans are pro-life and support government legislation on "morality" issues. In the Iraq War, Republicans wanted American troops home as soon as possible, but they saw Iraq as a legitimate battleground in the War on Terror and would think it wrong to leave until the country is more stable.
Remember, candidates create their own brand of the party that they belong to. John McCain was seen as a maverick because he has broken ranks with the Republican party in the past on "morality" issues. Part of Sara Palin's nomination can be tied to the fact that some Republicans thought McCain too "liberal" and not a true "conservative", as Palin herself has strong backing from the more conservative wing of the party.
Bill Clinton sometimes broke ranks with the Democratic party, as was the case when he signed a Republican bill into law that reduced welfare. Again, the American system allows the individual politician more flexibility than is found in Canada.
Now find out if you are a donkey or an elephant...
http://typology.people-press.org/typology/
Whenever any social group comes up with a system of governance, there are two competing factors at work; rights and responsibilities.
While the government may be charged with protecting certain individual rights, there is no escaping the fact that an individual who agrees to any democratic majoritarian system is to some extent giving up their individual freedoms. In other words, they accept the reality that they might not always be on the majority side of an argument and therefore have to abide by a law that restricts their individual liberty.
The examples I used included the restrictions on the use of property in a residential area and the restrictions on access to medical service in a universal health care system. In the former, an individual would not be allowed to use the property for industrial purposes. In the latter, an individual could be prohibited from "jumping the queue" because of their ability to pay for a particular medical procedure. In both cases, freedom of choice is restricted because a larger social good or responsibility has been deemed to take precedence over the individual right.
Here's another example from American headlines... it's the case of "It's My Lawnmower and I Can Shoot it If I Want To"...
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,391522,00.html
The classic struggle between rights and responsibilities is not limited to the labor that gives birth to a new government. Rather, it endures in an unremitting set of challenges fermenting the public discourse that ultimately shapes the character of the nation. And in that discourse, Lady Liberty has been sculpted in an image which consistently gives shelter to individual rights.
Read the Mayflower Compact. Note how the Pilgrims specifically recognize their need to "promise all due Submission and Obedience..." in abiding by the laws created for the good of the colony. The November 11, 1620 document cements America's preference for a government based on the consent of the governed.
http://www.yale.edu/lawweb/avalon/amerdoc/mayflower.htm
